Flowers and Towers and Lifelong Abductions
by three times over
Summary: HR characters set to the plot of Rapunzel, with the added twist of the GOOD character now being BAD, and the BAD character now being GOOD! I was very young when I started this and that's apparently what I thought was compelling. Focus on SB/Marzi in a very vague, unresolved, not-very-shippy-I-don't-think manner.
1. i

I have literally been writing this for so long, _Tangled_ was released and I thought I'd get shamed for being in fashion, then it completely faded from public memory and I was off the hook again.

I think the inception of this, was that I always thought rapunzels were a very obscure sort of plant; and that it was almost as much of a non-sequitur as I initially found the term 'marzipan'. In fact, it took me years to properly look up either of them, and to discover marzipan was _not_ a plant. So I guess I wrote this? And the eventual role-switch in this piece wasn't intentional, but started with what I figured was Homestar's natural association with her; then I recalled all this SB/Marzi fanart on deviantart, and became curious as to whether I could escape the constant fan narrative of 'HR  & Marzi Are Already Together But Secretly She Pines For This Guy She Hates And Vice Versa'. I find that silly.  
This also gets silly. 4/5 in we hit Peak Fanfiction Saturation. That's my bad.  
(The other thing worth noting, is that without Homestar in the public eye, I figure the 'main character' becomes Pom Pom; which is of course, not remotely true in practice, but it's something that probably needed prior mentioning. Because I did an awful job of conveying it, and without a blunt declaration, it just comes out of nowhere and is stupid. Lmao. x.x)

So, I don't think this is really very good at all; but it has been sitting in my hard drive for yonks, and heck I'm uploading it if it's the last thing I do. Forgive my fourteen-year-old self's writing; and well forgive my twenty-one-year-old self's writing too, but for a different reason. And _everybody_ please forgive me for Poorly Characterised Shipping. I love goofing around with different pairings, but I don't actually care about any of them, if that reassures anyone. It's difficult to twist characters towards something more serious than their source material; but I hope altogether this attempt is of idle amusement at least.

~2009-2016, ages 14-21! x

/-/-

* * *

It was a perfect day when Coach Z sauntered up to Bub's Concession Stand and spoke those seemingly innocent words: "Oh boy, Bubsy, am I havin' a spontaneous cravin' for marzipan."

"Why you tellin' me?" Bubs asked, putting down the kettle he was sorting. "You know I don't stock any candy worth more than three dollars!"

"Yeah, I know..." The coach sighed and leaned against the counter, head drooped despondently. "I was just thinkin', maybe youse could get some from that old lady's patch o' marzipans there? I'm sure she won't mind."

Bubs frowned, shoving his companion off his store. "There ain't no reason why you can't do it yourself!" That pitiful attempt at an adorable stare eventually got through to him, though, and with rage barely kept in check he pulled himself across to the small garden. Coach Z's face seemed to ignite rage like that.

The plants were definitely not like anything he'd seen before: they had a candied look about them, and it was indeed very hard to tell how they even grew. Bubs was fascinated by them for a short moment, before shrugging and grabbing one of the odd flowers.

"Halt! Pouwice! POUWICE!" Bubs froze. Coach Z froze. The wooden door slowly swung open... and out toddled an angry child, with an underbite the size of Montana. "Don't think of even touching my fwowers, heathens!"

 _I thought you said it was an old lady,_ Bubs mouthed to Coach Z, who mouthed back, _It's not my job to know these things._ No problem, then; he could scare the kid into submission. Bubs made sure each step was loud and forceful as he stomped up the path, until he completely shadowed the young child.

"Guess what, kid?" he said, coldly quiet. "I could set fire to your _whole garden_ , and there wouldn't be _nothing_ you could do about it."

"I can if you're stealing my veggies, _stealers_ ," Underbite-Kid retorted, possibly so spoilt or so oblivious that intimidation didn't affect him. "My gwamma gave me those, and I'm not letting you take them away fwom me!"

"Yeah, okay," Bubs said, turning round.

"What are you doin', man?! He's just a little kid! I need some food here!"

"What is this, middleman ping-pong?" Bubs muttered, before turning back to the small child. "Look, I got all kinds of crazy cra - _things_ I can give to you, okay? You just let me have this flower - a single flower - and you can have anything you want. Deal?"

Underbite-Kid complementated the offer for a minute. It was literally a minute, and in that time Bubs managed to take a few more flowers for future bribery. "It's a deal, mister. But," he shouted as Bubs was about to go back, "you gotta give me one of your babies!"

"Out of all the things he could want!" the blue man cried, finally losing his temper. "This is the stupidest thing I've had to do all day! Yeah, kid, I'll get you your baby. Coach Z, here's your freakin' marzipans. Now if you don't mind, I'll be leavin' here, hopefully managing to do something of more worth!"

"But Bubs," Coach Z started, hesitating as his friend turned around oh-so-slowly, "there ain't an orphanage anywhere near this place! Where do you suppose you'll ever find a dang _baby?_ "

"I got connections," came the curt reply, and Bubs stormed off before anybody else could add more.

/-

"Excuse me, Senor Runner."

"Yes, Marzipan?"

"Can... can I just ask why I've never been allowed out of this tower, my whole life?" The young girl nervously twisted her hair as she asked her question. "Not meaning any offense, Senor, but through this window-shaped hole it's hard to pretend I can't see the entire world, outside."

Crap. He knew the window was a bad idea. He should've gone without and reallocated the budget to stairs. But nevertheless, the damage was done! He would just have to change the subject with tact and authority.

"I can hear you, senor."

"... Cwap. Well, let me tell you, young missy, that this is all entirely for your own safety," Homestar snapped. "In case you didn't know, there's bears, and sharks, and they kill more people than coconuts!" He continured to glare at her intensely until she turned away to do some more painting.

It had been fifteen years since he'd been given custody of that kindly couple's baby, and while he couldn't quite remember why he'd decided on isolating her, it seemed like it was turning out alright. Sometimes, he'd wonder if it was the right thing to do... and then he'd reassure himself that it was better than having her boss him around, like she might in some alternate universe or something. Homestar didn't take orders from nobody.

Speaking of which, he was hungry.

"Hey, Marzi, I'm gonna go make some lunch," he said, walking over to the 'window'. He knew she hated this system ever since one of the many books brought up here happened to mention stairs; she grudgingly released the bun on her hair, though, letting metre after metre of braid fall out. Together, the two lifted the winding trail of hair up and over the ledge, and down and down it went...

/-


	2. ii

"Woah, The Cheat! Do you see that hot chick?"

"Meh mhre meh!"

"Neither can I! But I bet she's a real hottie when her facial features are actually visible. Come on, let's go lay on some one-liners... wait, what the crap is that guy doing?"

From a sizeable distance away, Strong Bad and his spotted doppelganger watched, shocked, as a white figure lowered itself from a tower using somebody else's hair. "Yeah, uh... ouch. Whack. Though I have to admit that _does_ look kinda fun..." He slowed to a silence when he realised The Cheat was looking at him weirdly. "What? I know for a fact that the words 'whack' and 'fun' are not mutally exclusive. Okay, like I was saying, let's go lay on some one-liners!" The wrestleman vaulted over the small bush he was behind, hit the grass face-first, then jumped back up and kept on running. The Cheat just went around.

The two slowed to a nervous stop in front of the tower: it stretched up far into the clouds, and that wasn't exactly a good thing, considering the rickety construction. Clearly this was not designed by anybody with copious amounts of intelligence.

"Meh mehmeh mehrmeh?"

"I know, man," Strong Bad muttered. "After seeing this quality home I'm not so sure the stairs would be more reliable, myself."

"Excuse me! Who - who's down there?" The voice was from high up, and it echoed around the sky; Strong Bad and The Cheat both looked up, and could just make out a young woman staring back down.

"So, what do you think?"

"Meh... meh. Meh mehr meh meh."

"Yeah, same here. I'd say... a six."

"I'm sorry! I can't hear you!" the girl called down. "My name is - my name's Marzipan. What's your names?"

"Dang, she's never heard of us! Looks like it's time to make an impression," Strong Bad grinned to his companion, before replying in the most nuanced manner he could think of. "I'm Strong Bad, also known as Sir Cool-a-Lot, Sir Hot-a-Bod, and Guy With The Twenty-Three Medals Of Varying Awesome! And that's The Cheat."

 _"Meh!"_

"... Did you just call yourself Sir Hot-A-Bod? I don't mean to be rude. But your introduction has given me a terrible impression."

"What? You're gonna lay off a guy just for a little self-confidence?" Strong Bad raised an eyebrow, frowning. Marzipan had now turned her back on them, and was retreating into her towering room. "Well, uh, sure. See ya, then." The two travellers turned and started walking back to the town, more than a little confused.

"Meh, mehrmeh meh, mehrmehmeh."

"I'm sure she's just overwhelmed by my existence," the wrestleman assured himself, and The Cheat. "We'll come back tomorrow, maybe she'll have calmed down a bit by then."

/-

"Yo, princess!"

 _Dear god,_ Marzipan thought.

"It's me, Strong Bad! Just in case you forgot! Hey, I know we got off to a bit of a bad start yesterday, but surely you can forgive a guy for not knowing how you roll, right?" The wrestler had now changed tactics, even bringing along an old plushie he'd found deep in his sock drawer. After all, when there was a girl that Pom Pom hadn't taken, you had to go all out. "Like, some girls are all about the dudes with ego. So, you know, I was just playing that up."

"Really." The girl finally appeared at her window, lips pursed tightly.

"Yeah, for sure," he insisted. "Look at me now, I'm grovelling and apologising. That's me showing you some self-awareness." The tendons in his neck were complaining something fierce. "It kinda hurts having to look up all the time, yanno. Maybe I should be hanging out up there."

"Oh, but I couldn't possibly let you in! I'm not allowed to," she swiftly insisted.

"... You're not _allowed_ to."

"Nope."

"And that's a problem because...?"

This made Marzipan pause and mull over for a moment. What _was_ the problem? Either her life trudged on as it always did - time crawling by in the same surrounds - or just once she could let her day involve something new. Senor Homestar was gone; he was always gone in the afternoon. He wouldn't return for at least an hour. It was how it always was...

" _There_ we go!" Strong Bad grinned as the long rope of hair cascaded down the tower. "Who said a little bit of sweet talk never fixed anything? Now, The Cheat, you're gonna have to stay here and watch out in case ol' Grody Bones returns." The Cheat sighed despondently, but did as he was told; Strong Bad jumped onto the plait and proceeded to heft himself up.

And boy, was it hard-going. By the time Marzipan was near enough to help heave him over the window, he was ready to drop down to a relieving death. The masked wrestler let himself flop to the floor, while the plushie he'd been holding rolled away from his glove.

Marzipan noticed the small item as she stepped away from her guest. Blinking, she brought it to eye level. "A teddy bear...?"

"... Hah, yeah," Strong Bad wheezed, using the last of his energy to lift his head up. "You... can have it. Girls... like that stuff... anyway."

"Just so you know, I don't appreciate that generalisation at all," the girl stated tightly. Despite this, she pulled the bear close to her chest, or wherever the equivalent of her chest was. "... Thanks."

"Hey, no problem," came the reply, the speaker of which was not awfully observant of body language. There was a short silence before Strong Bad's strength sufficiently recovered; he pushed himself up via the ledge before talking again. "Wow, you paint?"

Marzi turned to follow his line of vision, which led to the stacks of canvas in one segment of the room. "Oh! Well, yes. There isn't really anything else to do."

"Geez, really? I guess if I were locked up like this, I'd resort to painting too." Strong Bad ducked to dodge her invisible hand as it flew past him, the gust of wind being what gave it away. "Hey, hey, just joking! Painting's cool. Your stuff is neat. Better than whatever abstract crap Bubs tries to sell."

"'Abstract'?"

"All those books and you've never heard of abstract art?" The wrestler snorted, his grin changing him into a different person. "Trust me, you ain't missing out on much. If you'll let me borrow some of your art supplies there, I'll show you this 'ground-breaking' genre of art right now..."

/-

The Cheat had basically fallen asleep when a sudden thump from above startled him back into alertness.

"Meh meh mhre meh?"

"Huh, say that again... did I what?! That's disgusting! No way, we just talked about a bunch of stuff," Strong Bad protested as he abseiled down to the grass. "Totally think I'm winning her over, though."

"Mehr meh meh? Meh mehr, meh."

"Nah, she's stuck up there. Can't exactly climb down her own hair, and all." The wrestleman jumped the remaining distance, waving to the sky as the braid went back up. "It's kind of sad, really. What kind of messed-up dude _is_ that guy?"

The two of them sat looking up at the tower for a while. "Meh mhre meh mehrmeh meh."

"You know, I was kinda thinking the same thing." Strong Bad rubbed his chin in thought. "We can do this every lunch break, right? I normally skip a shift to eat early anyway. Meet me at the chloughb, and bring some spare cloth."

Yet again, they began to return to the town. "... Mehr meh, mehr meh."

"Oh, yeah, that must've kinda sucked. I'll tell her you're coming up with us next time."

/-


	3. iii

"Marzipan, I notice you seem to be painting a lot more _abstwact_ art lately."

"Yes," Marzipan said.

"I don't wecall giving you any books on abstwact art."

"You don't recall a lot of things."

Homestar frowned at this response, though he held his tongue for now: his ward seemed to be disrespecting him much more often these days. It was just teenage hormones, he was sure, but he was only slightly older than her and he hadn't gone through any of that.

It could've just been the truth, though. He didn't recall a lot of things.

"Is there... any particular _weason_ for this sudden change in artistic style?"

"Because I want to."

Another frown. Homestar may have not been the brightest box in the box-maker, but he sure knew when he had a gut feeling, he needed to listen to it. The faux guardian scanned the room slowly, paying close attention to the bric-a-brac scattered around... and then something caught his eye, that definitely wasn't there before.

"Ah-HA! What exactly," Homestar demanded as he pulled a long rope of knotted fabric squares from a corner, "is THIS?"

"... Don't you remember? You brought me an old blanket that you said I could use for weaving," Marzipan started slowly. If she treaded carefully, maybe he'd lose track of what he was saying.

"Hmm, yes. That sounds about wight..." The silence was foreboding as Homestar trekked around the room a little more, stopping near a stack of finished artwork. "But then would that explain THIS?!"

The teddy bear bobbed around as it swung into the air, one arm suspended by intangible means. Marzipan suddenly felt an acute awareness of the words 'PORPETY OF STONG BAD', scrawled conspicuously down its side.

Homestar beamed estatically, possibly not realising a smirk would be a more fitting reaction. "I knew it! You're the victim of _people thwowing things up here!_ And I am going to find out who it is whether you like it or not! Now, this is gonna be a difficult pwocedure, but..." He picked up a pair of scissors, and suddenly his grin felt horrifyingly sinister. "I'm gonna need that plait of yours."

/-

"I'm telling you, today's the day," Strong Bad grinned, running to the tower with more energy than usual. "We've been working on it for weeks now! And once she's escaped, I'll take her to _all_ the best date spots... she won't even be able to _comprehend_ them. She'll be _floored_."

The Cheat, shuffling alongside him with surprising speed, gave Strong Bad a doubtful look. "Meh mehehre mehmehmeh?"

"Come on, you were there with us, right? We've totally got something going. It'll be fine."

"Meh, meh..."

"Oh I am not getting soft," Strong Bad snapped, suddenly defensive. "This is what you do with girls. Maybe you never had any experience on the matter."

The Cheat started to growl in protest, but let it go as they reached what they now called Marzipan Tower. "... Mehremeh mehre."

"I told you already, if you can think of a better name then I'll use it all you want. Hey, Marzi!" the masked wrestler shouted up, as was now their common practice. "I got the last batch of cloth! Today's the day we bail you out!"

"Bail her - I mean, bail _me?_ " came the voice in response. It sounded... off. "Oh, I can't wait! You just wait there, and I'll have this stupid hair down in a second."

The duo looked at each other, but no questions were raised. Soon, the plait was cascading down the wall, as usual.

"... You know, I'm kind of getting an bad feeling. I know nothing's really happened the other times, but you watch out for that guy, okay?" The Cheat sighed and nodded, letting Strong Bad hop onto the plait on his own. Knowing he had a long few hours ahead of him, the yellow creature started listening in on the small talk.

"Did I tell you what we're gonna do?" the wrestleman started to say, as he made his way further up. "Actually, nah, I should keep it a surprise. Can't wait to see, right?"

"See what?" she replied, her voice shockingly deep. Strong Bad stopped. "I mean..." as it went back to somewhat-normal, "see what?"

"You know! Date places. Wait - not that this is a date, it's just those are the coolest places to go, you know what I mean. And we can go to all the friend-places, too..." The banter started to echo more as Strong Bad went higher, but still perfectly audible to The Cheat below. Finding he was craning his neck, the animal dropped onto his back to watch. "How much do you know about malls? I'm not a huge fan of them, but since you've probably never been to one, it'll be alright."

"Oh, uhh... I like malls! Since I'm a girl!"

"Yeah, I figured as much."

Casual talk went on for a while, and The Cheat found his eyes drooping again. Work really took a lot out of a The Cheat, after all. He purred softly, and let his eyes close, mind drifting to another place...

"Wait, _WHAT THE CRAP?!_ "

/-


	4. iv

"Ah - _HA!_ You've activated my _twap card!_ " crowed the no-armed whitey, squinting at his perpetrator. "All that talk about going out with me _sealed the deal_ , you little suitor!"

 _"Who the hell are you?"_ Strong Bad cried, fighting the urge to run lest he fall to the ground.

"It is I: Homestar Runner! The one who's a tewwific athlete!"

"I've never heard of you."

"And as you can see," the Homestar Runner continued, "this is my tower, which I have kept my sweet ward in for all these years. I'm not letting her out!" he shouted.

"Marzipan!" the masked wrestler shouted, making the connection. "Where is she?!"

"What?"

"... Yes, _what?_ "

"Hmm. I dunno."

"What do you mean, _you don't know?!_ " Strong Bad tried to lunge for the other character, one hand scrabbling at the severed plait. Homestar's eyes widened in shock, and he tried to yank the hair from Strong Bad's grasp. "You lock up this girl for _seventeen years,_ and you _don't know_ where she's gone in this _tiny, useless room?_ _What did you do to her?!_ "

"Geez, calm down, westleman! I pwobably, like, put her down there or something. She's fine."

 _"The ground is four storeys down from here!"_ the 'westleman' cried, and leapt through the opening, slamming onto the floor as Homestar jumped out of the way. The building creaked ominously as he rushed at him again; this time they both hit a wall, and the floor started to tilt.

From below, The Cheat screeched in panic as the tower started to sway...

And with a final snap, down and down it went, the top slowly collapsing into itself.

 _"MEH!"_ the little creature screamed, frantically looking for anything to help Strong Bad. As wood started to splinter onto him he realised there wasn't time, and with a loud wail, sprinted out of the way.

The Cheat just managed to make a final leap as the room smashed right behind him. Nervously waiting for the wreckage to quieten, he inched closer to a large pile of paintings. The topmost canvases started to move around and he squealed in upmost terror.

"The Cheat... is that you?" A distinctive glove pushed the last painting out of the way, and Strong Bad sat up, dizzy and scratched but otherwise fine. "Wow, I... have no clue what just happened."

"Mehr mehmeh meh!"

"Actually, I landed on the giant cloth rope we were making! And these paintings aren't all that heavy, surprisingly." He pushed himself up, stumbling a little. "I think a corner dug into my waist though... _ow._ "

"... Meh, mehrmeh mehmeh?"

Oh, that... 'Homestar' guy! He should be here too..." The two surveyed the destroyed tower, with The Cheat climbing up onto the pile of paintings. Strong Bad suddenly snorted, and motioned for The Cheat's attention.

"Well, would you look at that," he grinned, pointing at a long, tangled plait of hair, with one Homestar Runner caught inside. "Lady Deus Ex Machima: I owe you big time! I'm supposing he won't get out for a while."

"You _scoundwels!_ " Homestar shouted furiously, trying to wriggle his way out. "You won't get away with this, you meddling kid! And your dog too!"

"Okay we'll see if we can get the police all up on him, _then_ we'll point out his glaring error in species identification," Strong Bad muttered as The Cheat started to tremble angrily. "And after that... we need to find Marzipan, okay? Who knows where she is," he grimaced, worried. "Let's settle this first, though. Needa make sure he's not... hiding any more ladies."

/-

Marzipan sat by a road at the outskirts of town, obscured by a tree's leafy shadow. She was roughly aware she should seek some sort of help - learn the ins and outs, or something, become one with the village - but when she tried to pin down where to start, she felt herself becoming quite ill. Every so often someone would come near; she was sure they were kindly and understanding, but then she would feel her nerve abandoning her, and silently hid as they passed by. What was she meant to say, anyway? 'Sorry, but could you help me with _life?_ '

She sighed to herself, combing out her hair as best as she could. It had been chopped off roughly, and the short locks fell around her head in a lopsided bob. Maybe she should just go back to the tower. He hadn't really done anything wrong, Marzipan convinced herself; or at least, he didn't mean it. He was just dim. At least that world was what she knew.

Maybe she would walk around again. That sounded good; enjoy her freedom while it lasted. She rose from the grass and started to meander across the cobblestone road - walking right into a big, balloonlike sphere.

"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" Marzipan gasped, knocked to the ground. She tried to scramble away. She hyperventilated a little.

The figure, though, simply laughed confidently, offering one stout arm to lift her up. Soft bubbling echoed from him as he talked.

"T-thank you," Marzipan remembered to say, once she was standing upright. "Pom Pom, was it? I'm Marzipan. I, um... I'm new here. Very new." She felt him take her by the shoulder and she let him lead the way. "In any case," she giggled, "I'm glad I could be assisted by such a gentleman."

/-


	5. v

_It's time to brace yourselves for K-drama, folks._

/-/-

* * *

"Strong Mad, you will not _believe_ this," Strong Bad gloated as he entered the police station, "but I have got the _hugest_ story for you this side of Free Country! And I'm talking like, kept-this-girl-in-a-tower-for-fifteen-years serious - Pom Pom? _Marzipan?!_ "

Strong Mad gravely eyed his brother from his interrupted circle. "WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT," he bellowed judicially.

"Are you kidding?! There's nothing left to _enforce!_ " Strong Bad flung away his end of the plait, storming towards the group - leaving The Cheat, screeching in panic, as sole security guard for their criminal. "Marzipan is the girl I'm talking about! This mystery is _solved! I did all the work!_ "

Pom Pom bubbled angrily and moved forward as well - playing the hero again, _typical_ \- until Strong Mad slammed his hands onto both their shoulders, halting them with a world of pain. "ALL CITIZENS," he glared, "ARE ASKED TO COOPERATE IN A HOUSE OF LAW. AND _YOU_ ," he roared at Homestar, who had nearly shuffled out the door despite The Cheat's frantic intentions. The behemoth latched onto the braided restraint in a matter of steps and pulled the criminal up close.

"MR. HOMESTAR MICHAEL RUNNER. YOU ARE WANTED FOR: SIX HUNDRED AND FORTY-NINE (649) CHARGES OF THEFT. TWELVE (12) CHARGES OF RESISTING POLICE. ONE (1) CHARGE OF FAILING TO COMPLY WITH FREE COUNTRY BUILDING REGULATIONS. YOU ARE RECEIVING ONE (1) CHARGE OF ABDUCTION. YOU," he finished, "ARE NOW UNDER ARREST." He shook Homestar violently. "YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT. ANYTHING YOU SAY OR DO MAY BE USED AGAINST YOU IN A COURT OF LAW. I HAVE FORGOTTEN THE REST BUT WILL READ IT TO YOU IN YOUR CELL. _DO YOU UNDERSTAND?_ " Homestar visibly gulped and nodded frantically. Strong Mad turned to the others. "CONTINUE."

"Look, Strong Mad," the younger brother began, nursing his sore shoulder, "what I'm saying is you should be talking to me, right? I've been working to break Marzi out for like, _months_. I'm the one with all the goods. And _Pom Pom_ here can just shove it." The spheroid being snorted and began to bubble out some sort of insult, when a soft 'ahem' rose from behind him.

" _Or maybe,_ " Marzipan began coldly, moving into the center of the group, "he was talking to _me_."

"You got a haircut," Strong Bad found himself blurting, and then, "oh". "Look, _of course_ he was talking to you," he assured her, "and that's exactly what I mean! Pom Pom, you don't know him, he just - he keeps _butting into things_. Just rocks up and steals the show! And then the people living in his _shadow_ , they'll leg all the _hard yards_ for _years on end_ and _they'll receive nothing for it_ -"

"Strong Bad, what is your _problem?!_ " Marzipan suddenly cried. His words choked in his throat. The anguish in her voice stung deep. He felt his pride flare up in pain and his blood begin to boil. "Pom Pom has been nothing but _gracious_ to me since I've been - since I've been _here,_ " she went on. "Do you know how _terrified_ I've been this whole time? I don't know what would've happened if I hadn't met him -"

"What about what would've happened if you hadn't met _me?_ "

 _"Why do you have to make this about yourself?!"_

" _It's not about me!_ It's about _you!_ "

He hadn't meant to say that.

He saw a certain confusion in her eyes, when she stared back at him.

But in a split-second, her face had hardened again. "I think you'll find," she finally stammered, voice low and shaky, "that if nothing else, I can handle _myself._ " She twisted away, dress billowing. "I've told the police everything I can, anyway. I will return when I remember more things worth knowing."

"Oh yeah? And just where will you go?" Strong Bad snapped, as she shuffled past. "I don't recall you knowing a single thing about this place."

"Pom Pom helped me," she replied simply, glowering over her shoulder one last time. "And where I will be is none of your business."

The doors slammed behind her, warm light filtering in from the roadside.

Strong Bad felt his insides slink out through the floor. His fists wouldn't stop trembling. Pom Pom bounded up to him without amiability. _Nice one, kid,_ he bubbled, eyes narrowed. _Didn't know I'd caused so much tragedy._ He took his own leave, bounces echoing around the hall.

The room seemed far too large and empty for the people left in it. Strong Bad collapsed on a chair, kneading his forehead. The silence suffocated his entire being.

"Okay, so," said Homestar, "I guess this is pretty awkward, but I weckon if we all just forgive and forget here, nobody needs to go thwough any twouble."

The death glare Strong Mad gave him seemed to indicate otherwise.

/-

The inn's rooms were small, but to Marzipan a queen couldn't have lived anywhere more spacious. She lay on her side atop the grubby bed, gazing at the wooden planks in the wall. The clock on the wall ticked by in its mechanical rhythm.

This should've been a new beginning for her, but it felt directionless, and anticlimatic, and - the day wouldn't stop weighing on the back of her mind.

A soft knock echoed from the door. She pulled herself up and delicately approached the barrier.

"Pom Pom?"

"I'm sorry," came Strong Bad's voice from the other end.

Marzipan curtly yanked the door ajar. "How did you know where I was?" she accused him through the thin slit. "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?" He was always tough to read, but behind the hostility and pompour, his eyes seemed to flinch.

"I ask everyone in town where the new girl's gone, I drag my butt here _solely_ to embarrass myself, and you refuse to even humour me," he muttered. "Should I just _go?_ "

"Do you know just how scary this could be for me? I-If you'd done something that I wanted to escape from - and you've just gone and _tracked me down_ -"

"Do I _look_ like a serial killer to you?" Strong Bad started to argue, and then, he exhaled and his pride shrunk back down. "Okay, I get it. I'm a horrible person. Way too full of myself to realise when I should've shut up long ago. If you decided that was your limit, it wouldn't be the first time." He grandly stepped away from the door, arms spread bare. "Here. I won't get all up in your space, or whatever. If you don't want to deal with me, I can come back tomorrow. Or if you don't want to deal with me _forever,_ I'll be on my way." When he looked her in the eye, she saw hints of the man she'd shot down from her tower, so long ago. "What's it gonna be?"

She returned his stare with equal guardedness, the seconds stretching on, and then - "Don't be so melodramatic," she sighed, opening up the door.

/-

[ **END ?** ]

 _Thank you for reading! :)  
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* * *

 _"So, what do you think?" he ventured, breaking the stillness of the night air._

 _"Strong Bad," Marzipan finally whispered, "it's beautiful." The ocean gently lapped at the rocks below._

 _"I mean, I had this whole list of things you were meant to see," the wrestler shrugged carelessly, "but then I figured, well who's got time for the bottom ten, when you can skip straight to the top -"_

 _"You talk too much," she heard herself murmur. He saw his double-take from the corner of her eye._

 _"_ Excuse _me?"_

 _"You - you just say a lot of words -" she winced; the words came out nervous at first, but then she felt the courage churning stronger inside her - "and they never - they never_ mean _anything, it's always got to be dramatic and grand and_ dismissive _of everything and never -_ you _."_

 _She turned to look at him properly, and saw his brow knit in a way she hadn't seen before. "Is it, now," is all he muttered. The rolling of the sea was the only sound for a while; she was beginning to regret saying anything at all, when his voice pierced through the cooling breeze again. "Sometimes it isn't worth being yourself," he grumbled, staring out to the starry horizon. "That's how I ended up where I was."_

 _"Hm?"_

 _He curled up tighter and began to pick at the grass beside him. He was looking, she realised, everywhere besides her. "Second-best, Marzi. People like Pom Pom - they're naturals at it. They swarm like flies, get all the hot gigs - their lives are just_ laid out _for them like a three-course meal. Meanwhile my only pals in the whole village are The Cheat and a lug of a brother who doesn't even have that much going on in the brains department."_

 _"You're missing one," she pitched in, and he halted. "The Cheat, your lug of a brother, and me?"_

 _He blinked. "Oh." Picked at more grass. "Sure."_

 _"And I don't get this obssession with Pom Pom," she went on, now that she seemed to have a chance. "He's his own person, and so are you. Isn't there_ anything _you've done that you could say you're proud of? Surely there's_ something _in your life he doesn't have - something that you can call your own, and - I don't know, I just... something that makes you_ happy? _"_

 _He finally looked straight at her, something flickering across his face that she couldn't figure out - and then, he glanced away, the words dying unsaid. "You don't worry about it, Marzi. You don't worry about it at all."_


End file.
